We’ve been meaning to talk about this for a while.
It took us time to bring the full wine list together — a few months, in fact. We wanted to make sure the wines were right, that we could hold proper stock, and that the list worked as a whole.
From the start, we knew that if we were going to do it properly, it had to feel complete. Now we want to explain why, and what sits behind it.
A Restaurant Built Around Wine
One of the core ideas behind Trillium from day one was simple: wine should play a major role.
In a lot of restaurants, food leads and wine follows. The list is there because it has to be. It ticks the box, but rarely does much more than that. We wanted the opposite. A place where wine is part of the experience, not just something you add on.
Of course, we say it ourselves, but it’s one of the most complete and interesting wine lists you’ll find not just in Birmingham, but across the West Midlands, and possibly further. That’s partly down to scale, but more importantly, it’s how the list has been put together.
Every bottle on the list has been chosen with care. Nothing has gone in without thought. We’ve spent hours discussing what deserves to be there, and what doesn’t — often because a similar wine is already on the list.
The result is a balanced list of over 500 wines — a mix of classics, lesser-known producers, and genuinely exciting finds. There’s something for every kind of drinker, whether you want something familiar or feel like exploring a bit further. That might be a classic Burgundy, a fresh coastal Spanish wine like Albariño, or something more unexpected from volcanic regions.
You can keep things simple, or go quite deep into it. From a glass of Krug to something like Etna Bianco from Sicily, or even a 20-year-old Port by the glass, it’s all there.
Not Just Regions — But Places
If you dine with us, you’ll notice that the list isn’t structured in the most traditional way.
Alongside the classic regions, we’ve organised parts of it around environments — coastal, inland, mountain, volcanic, and island wines.
We’re interested in how where a wine comes from shapes how it tastes, and this felt like a more natural way to explore that.
A big part of the list leans into volcanic and island wines. These tend to be some of the most distinctive wines out there. Volcanic soils often produce wines with real energy and edge — something a bit more lifted, sometimes slightly smoky or mineral, but always characterful.
Island wines are just as interesting, but for different reasons. Every island is its own environment. Wind, salt, heat, isolation — all of it plays a role. The result is that no two are really alike. Some are bright and fresh, others deeper and more structured, but they nearly always carry a strong sense of place.
You’ll see this in wines like Assyrtiko from Santorini or Etna Bianco from Sicily — places where the landscape really shows in the glass. Alongside that, we also love working with coastal regions, including some brilliant Spanish wines like Albariño, which bring freshness and energy to the list.
That’s what makes wine exciting to us. Not just what’s in the glass, but where it comes from and why it tastes the way it does. And if you ask, our sommelier Thomas will happily talk about that for hours.
Why We Don’t Do Wine Flights
We don’t offer wine flights. We may introduce them at some point, but for now, we’ve taken a different approach. Instead of fixed pairings, we’ve built a very extensive by-the-glass list and focused on having a team that can guide you through it properly.
Rather than being locked into a set flight, you can effectively build your own.
If you feel like exploring, we can put together a few different glasses for you to try side by side. Something lighter to start, something a bit more structured after, maybe something unexpected in the middle. Or we can keep things simple and comfortable.
Because of that, you might find yourself starting with something like Charles Heidsieck, moving into a volcanic white from Tenerife, and finishing with something completely different.
It can be shaped around anything — what you usually enjoy, what you’re eating, how adventurous you’re feeling, even something as simple as the weather or the kind of evening you want to have.
For us, this feels more natural, more flexible, and ultimately more personal than a fixed flight ever could be.
House Wines, Done Properly
In the UK, “house wine” often ends up meaning the cheapest option on the list — and, quite often, the least interesting.
That’s not how we see it.
We wanted our house wines to actually mean something. Something we’d be happy to drink ourselves. They’ve been created specifically for Trillium in collaboration with Katie Jones, a winemaker originally from Shropshire, now based in Languedoc. Her vines are over 90 years old, producing wines with real depth and character.
Together, we developed a white and a red from the ground up. We didn’t just select them, but actually blended the wines with the idea of creating genuinely enjoyable, versatile wines that work across a wide range of dishes.
They’re designed to be approachable and easy to drink, but still properly put together — balanced, reliable, and likeable. In many ways, they’re the most “useful” wines on the list: proper crowd-pleasers, done well.
And if you like them, it’s not limited to the restaurant. All of our wines are available to buy online as well.
It doesn’t stop at wine either. We’ve also created a small range of our own spirits — including gin, vodka, and rum — made specifically for Trillium. Just like the wines, these were developed with the same attention to detail and are available both in the restaurant and online.
This list took time, but that was always the point. We wanted something that felt complete, considered, and genuinely enjoyable to drink from — whether it’s your first visit or your tenth.
It’s finally there. (View our wine list)
Ask Us Anything
If you’ve made it this far, you probably care about wine at least a little bit — which is exactly what this list is for.
If you have questions, thoughts, or even disagreements, we’d love to hear them. Whether it’s about a specific bottle, a region, or just where to start, feel free to ask below.
Wine can be as simple or as deep as you want it to be, and we’re always happy to talk about it — in the restaurant or online!
